Bandoleer packaging generally includes a tube formed from a primary web into which items are inserted. The individual packages are typically formed by heat sealing top and bottom seams or edges of the packages along the tube. A perforation or other weakening is generally placed between the top edge of one package and the adjacent bottom edge of another package to ease separation of the packages from the bandoleer. One way to separate packages from a bandoleer is to run the bandoleer through a bursting mechanism. Burst mechanisms generally include rollers that engage the edges of the bandoleer and put tension on the bandoleer to pull packages off the end of the bandoleer.
Bandoleer packages separated by bursting mechanisms are generally limited to flat contents to avoid damage to the contents. Dimensioned objects tend to travel within the individual packages before entering the burst station. When the packages pass through the burst mechanism, dimensioned objects that have traveled toward the edges of the packages can be damaged or destroyed by the burst rollers.
Packages similar to individual bandoleer packages have been affixed to the exterior of larger packages or other substrates for various purposes. Although bandoleers are convenient for the production of such individual packages, prior art bandoleer packages must be individually separated and glued to the larger packages. This is generally too time consuming and labor intensive to be sustained for high levels of production.